With a last-minute, anonymous donation of $1,500, the annual Hope’s Kitchen fundraising drive organized by the Kirksville Daily Express surpassed $9,000 for its second-best total of all time.

The annual holiday-season drive benefits Hope’s Kitchen, which was established in 1999 by KHS students Rachel Higgins and Megan Lesczynski. The soup kitchen operates out of Mary Immaculate Catholic Church and serves more than 200 meals every third and fourth Saturday from 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m., in addition to delivering meals to homebound and disabled residents.

The drive tallied $9,131, second only to last year’s $10,073. Since 2001, the annual campaign has provided Hope’s with more than $64,000.

“This is the third year in a row we’re so close to $10,000. We can run Hope’s on that for a year,” said Tim Tucker, secretary for the all-volunteer board. “I feel like the economy has a lot to do with the exceptional generosity.”

There’s also a sense of community pride in Hope’s.

“People stop me in town and ask how Hope’s is doing. People are proud of it. They care. They have a part in it,” Tucker said.

A.T. Still University student Katelin Kehoe is president of the Hope’s Kitchen board. Originally from Stockton, Calif., a city of around 300,000, she has been impressed by the outpouring of support in the Kirksville area.

“The people in the community are amazing,” she said. “It’s really touching for me to have that response.”

Kehoe said the funds will help Hope’s continue to offer its services, which is more than just a meal.

“It’s nice for people in the community to not just get a meal, but come in and interact with us,” Kehoe said. “It’s nice to see them and chat with them.”